Fate Eternal Night
by Drakeula
Summary: As a clock clicks down, heroes and villains alike will face their fate. But will they try to change it?
1. Chapter 1

**Fate/Eternal Night**

**Ch. 1: Sibling Rivalry**

She's clueless. Am I just not showing it right? Is she ignoring the signs? Shirou Emiya kept running these thoughts through his mind, scratching his head, further messing up his spiky red hair, as he walked downstairs to the shoe lockers.

Club activities ended minutes ago, and it was usual routine for him to meet Sakura Matou there. They would leave school together and stay at his house for hours on end, until it was time to take her home. Shirou couldn't help his feelings of getting more romantically attached to her.

Shirou's eagerness was making his walking pace faster than usual. Issei Ryudou and Rin Tohsaka, Shirou's two best friends, noticed how Shirou was acting and proceeded to follow him out of the student council room. Shirou told them he was going to confess his feelings to Sakura soon, and they figured the day had come.

Issei and Rin were members of the student council, president and treasurer respectively, and Sakura was a member of the archery club. Shirou wasn't in a club, but he often traveled the school, repairing anything broken. He fixed the student council room heater at Issei's request. It was at that time Issei and Rin noticed the new persona Shirou had on him. It was Rin's idea to tail Shirou, despite Issei's request to respect their privacy. The two of them waited around the corner of the stair case, keeping an eye on Shirou pacing back and forth.

"Why'd you follow me if you didn't want to come?" Rin whispered to Issei.

"Because I had to make sure you didn't interrupt them," Issei responded with a rather agitated attitude.

"Give me more credit."

"No, you-"

The two of them crawled back a bit further when Sakura came into sight. When Sakura saw Shirou, she gave him the same pleasant smile she always did.

"Good afternoon, Senpai," Sakura greeted him.

"Hi, Sakura," Shirou said stiffly.

"Are you okay?" Sakura asked him as his abnormal attitude stood out.

Rin giggled a bit as she knew Shirou was always bad at hiding his feelings. Issei put his hand over her mouth to stop her from breaking out in laughter.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm good. Never better," Shirou quickly responded.

"That's good. You seem a bit off." Sakura started to move towards her shoe locker until Shirou suddenly burst it out.

"Will you go out with me?" Shirou said it so suddenly, but he figured it was his only option. He tried looking for signs of mutual responses from her since a while after they started seeing each other regularly. However, he never saw any. She'd either decline events with just the two of them or invite other people. But he needed his answer now.

Sakura was quiet. Her faced looked more worried than embarrassed, and this concerned Shirou.

"I'm sorry!" shouted Sakura as she attempted to rush out the door before even fully changing shoes.

Shirou caught her by the arm.

Shirou, don't do it. Rin was now serious and began thinking of the worse possible outcome.

With Shirou's hand wrapped around Sakura's arm, he scrunched up her sleeve just enough to see the new beat marks on her arm. Sakura slapped him for not listening and controlling himself. Before she could do anything more, Shirou bolted to the archery club room outside. He knew Shinji, Sakura's brother, was still there. He'd always be there flirting with the girls.

Shinji didn't see what was coming as he felt a force yank the back of his collar and throw him to the ground. The other club members gasped as Shirou pounded at Shinji's face and arms, trying block him.

"I'm fucking sick of everything with you, Shinji!" Shirou roared at him. Shirou was aware of Shinji's physical abuse towards his sister. It was the whole reason Sakura stayed at Shirou's home for the majority of the day. But he couldn't protect her all the time. She'd have to return home every night to her brother, and whoever else that lived at the house and permitted this. Shirou wanted no more of it, and he felt like he was at his brink.

"Senpai, please stop!" Sakura cried from Shirou.

Shirou struggled to land another punch or not. He interpreted both outcomes as ones to help her. He ended up lowering his arms, and turned to Sakura with tears running down his face. He stood up and motioned towards Sakura. She took a step back away from him, however.

"I'm going home today," Sakura said to him as she walked out the room. Sakura was confronted at the shoe locker by Rin this time. Issei had already left to avoid any drama he didn't belong in.

"If you go home, what will Shinji do to you?" Rin asked the obvious.

"I get hurt either way," Sakura replied.

"Then let Shirou protect you."

"Like you care!"

"I do-"

"Then why haven't you ever proved it!? What has our families being apart done to stop you from being my friend!? You don't care about me, the Tohsaka family never will!"

Rin didn't answer Sakura, and left the school first. Rin was held back by fear to ever be Sakura's friend. They were no longer sisters after Rin's father sold Sakura to the Matou family. Rin didn't know what she was afraid of, it was just a wall that she didn't want to break. It might have been for the best, it might not. Sakura left a few minutes after Rin did.

* * *

Shirou stood in the middle of the rest of the archery club members. "Are you going to report me?" he asked Shinji and the other club members.

"I'll do no such thing, Emiya," Shinji replied.

Shirou and everyone else was stunned by Shinji's answer.

"We're leaving it at that," Shinji said while wiping his face with a towel as he proceeded to leave school for the day. "I want you here, come your fated day," Shinji said to himself, referring to Shirou, with a wide grin on his face.


	2. Chapter 2

**Fate/Eternal Night**

**Ch. 2: Common Secrets**

Rin walked into the local Catholic Christian cathedral. Sitting on an upfront bench sat a man with gold hair and a black jacket. She never learned who he was, despite her pestering, and later ignored his presence. She got on her knees before the altar and heard the door leading to the back open before she could begin her prayer.

"I heard the entrance open, but I didn't expect you," said Rin's mentor, Kirei Kotomine.

"Who else would be here at a time like this?" Rin asked rhetorically.

"Perhaps someone with a confession," Kirei replied smugly, as if he won something.

"I don't have time with you. I got homework, and this place is out of my way as is."

"You must be here for something important then."

Rin couldn't calm herself and take anymore of Kirei's presence. She proceeded to walk back down the hall to leave the cathedral.

"How would your father feel to see his own child act so spoiled in front of the Lord?" Kirei couldn't reset the ability to taunt her.

"My father was a mage, not a member of the church. Don't talk about him like you know him," Rin said fiercely to combat Kirei's words.

"It's still disrespectful," Kirei got out one final quip.

This was typical Kirei, and the two of them never got along. Rin still had some guilt left in her to ever except Kirei as her teacher. However, with her father dead and mother in a permanent vegetative state, who was to guide her? Carrying on her duties as a mage came first, both as a child ten years ago and now. Whatever qualms she had with her sister, were not enough to pray about in Kirei's presence; it was her duty to doubt god's existence anyway. Rin had to prepare herself for the biggest event of her life, to take revenge for her family name: the 5th Holy Grail War.

* * *

Sakura returned home to it being quitter than ever before. It was two years since she last returned home immediately after school. She had always been going to Shirou's house, ever since he welcomed her with open arms. It hit her suddenly, despite being alone, this home could never feel safe to her.

Maybe staying with Shirou is the best thing? No, no, no. He'll be hurt by Grandpa. She knew her life meant only one thing Zouken Matou, her adoptive grandfather, and that was her blood as a mage. She was the only one acceptable to partake in the upcoming Holy Grail War. Zouken was dying, probably not capable of supplying the mana necessary to keep a Servant at full strength, and Shinji was a lost cause. He didn't have what it took to be a mage in the eyes of the Matou family.

She proceeded past Zouken's bedroom, Shinji's study, and the hidden chamber, to make it to the stairs. The smell of the chamber was hidden, but she was too familiar with it to ignore its presence. Chills ran down her spine as she walked past the chamber. As she came off the stairs, now on the second floor, she walked to the bathroom. She looked at herself in the mirror, questioning who she was anymore. She grew up getting used to the Matou way: being in the chamber every night, never bothered for the first eight years she was in their custody. It was when she finally met Shirou, did her feelings begin to change.

She recollected the very first time she ever saw him. It was seven years ago, and he was running along the high school track. As an elementary student, he was jumping against the hurdles at impossible odds. He never made a single jump. But it was his determination, until nightfall, that kept her ideally watching him. His confidence was the most refreshing thing she had ever seen. But she figured she would never see him again. He was boy that didn't go to her school. The most she had was Rin, being the idol student of the class. She grew up jealous of her blood-sister, alone in junior high school, and it wasn't until freshman year of high school, did she meet the man of her dreams for the first time ever.

I can't rely on him. I can't rely on anyone. Sakura knew there was no saving her. Her uncle, Kariya Matou, failed miserably to give Sakura the life he said she deserved. The 4th Holy Grail War killed him. To get close to Shirou, to run away from home, would be to kill him to; only for the sake of the Holy Grail War.

She undid the magic cast of her hair and eyes; from all violet, they reverted to the colors of her birth: black hair and green eyes. Shinji could be heard returning home as well. After changing her features back, she had decided this is her last night with the abuse of the Matou's. She was the mage. She held two identities, and now, she could hold a third.

* * *

There was always a second pair of shoes at the door of the Emiya household, but things didn't feel the same without Sakura. Shirou couldn't imagine what she was facing at the moment. He attempted to walk past Taiga, sitting in the living room watching the television, but failed.

"Where's Sakura, Shirou?" asked his godmother. Taiga Fuijimura was his guardian. He refused to change his surname from Emiya, from his adoptive father: Kiritsugu, although he doesn't remember what it was prior to that.

"Not coming home today. I gave her something to think about. I'll make dinner in her place today." Shirou, Sakura, and Taiga took turns on cooked for the day. It helped everyone, and despite the burden, made Sakura feel more like a part of the family. Shirou left it at that and went to his room.

He only stayed in there momentarily to change his clothes. He always had beat up clothes ready for the time he spent practicing magic in the shed. He knew of no other mage to help him train, beyond the deceased Kiritsugu, so he practiced alone daily. He practiced every art of magic there was, but he was only able to perform one of them: the magic of reinforcement. He broke down everything to a molecular level and reconstructed it, even if it meant borrowing from other materials in sight. He was no good at it, however. On his way to the shed, he picked up a random stick from the back yard and tried to reinforce it. As he entered the shed, he slammed the stick against the wall and was disappointed to see it still break.

I need to get better. It was all he could think about when he set his mind to magic. He looked up to Kiritsugu as a hero. It was ten years ago, when Shirou first set eyes on Kiritsugu. Kiritsugu, for whatever reason, had the eyes of someone who fully appreciated that they had just been saved. It made no sense to Shirou; Kiritsugu saved him. But Shirou was sure of one thing, he needed to find that equivalent of pleasure for himself. Shirou idolized Kiritsugu as a hero, so that's what he must become as well. To carry on the Emiya name, to be praised, to find enlightenment, to establish a life beyond worry and question of the present and past, to relieve himself of his guilt as the only survivor: that was Shirou Emiya's goal. No hero is perfect, and Shirou would continue to do good deeds for his own selfish reasons. But he was still weak, and had yet to save the first person in dire need of his help.

Shirou continually pushed himself to the edge of what his mind could take. His body never felt like it had a limit, and he took advantage of it. No matter the stress he put on himself physically, his body never gave in to the stress. Shirou would continue to feel more and more pain, and had to consciously stop to avoid death; although he never knew where death was waiting. His training took him into nightfall, as he finally fell asleep in the shed and waited to be awoken the next morning by Sakura, if she would ever come again.


	3. Chapter 3

**Fate/Eternal Night**

**Ch. 3: Career Plans**

Fuyuki City held the average silence of any other night: the slight commotion of downtown Miyama, across the Mion river; the rattling of shutters in the wind amidst the small shopping district within Shinto, the other half of Fuyuki; the average car driving by every few minutes; the ambient tone of a gem's glow in the Tohsaka household; the clicks, rattles, and slithers of various bugs in the Matou chamber; and the news at low volume in the Emiya living room, with Taiga having fallen fast asleep in front of it.

The nightly news was currently being broadcasted. The subject matter was the Ogawa Apartment Complex in Mifune City. The news reporters were acting as if they were excited for the new establishment. As Japanese population was noticeably decreasing, the expansion of Mifune City came to a dead halt. For those seeking homes, the Ogawa Apartment Complex was a God given gift.

* * *

Mifune City was large and bustling. Even in the dead middle of night, the city was very much alive. However, not everything breathed with loads of life. No one walked within the abandoned extension of the city. It was a project that was cancelled when Mifune's population was no longer increasing, and no one took advantage the opportunity do more with the project. The only thing ever seen going in and out was a series of mysterious moving trucks. No one knew it yet, but the last moving truck had just left the district.

Mikiya Kokutou saw the truck leave the district, and knew there had to be something there. His days of research led him to the abandoned district. What he didn't realize while he stood across the road, still on what was considered the living side, was that what kept him apart from the building he was looking for was a simple crosswalk. It was right in front of him, not at all hidden within the depths of the district.

If someone lived here, how could have no one else ever noticed? He never knew it either, until he actually came looking for it. He stepped forward, not fearing the night. He had nowhere to be. He no job to ready for and no family he was eager to return to. He had a father, mother, and sister, but he lived alone in his own apartment. His parents paid for most of the expenses, but it was up to him to find a job soon, as he was already 20-years-old and currently refused to go to college. But he put these worries behind him. What came first was meeting the maker of the doll he cherished.

Mikiya entered upon the first floor. Nothing stood out. It was just as abandoned as anyone would imagine. He proceeded to follow up the stairs. A red light emitted from the seam between the bottom of the second floor door and the stair case. He attempted to open the door to no success. He proceeded upward, wondering what kind of person this Touko Aozaki would be.

He talked with her on the phone, but had little to any idea. It was at an art museum, a trip with his sister, did he first hear of her. There were a series of life size dolls on display made by her, but one caught Mikaya's undivided attention. The doll reminded him so much of Shiki Ryougi, the woman he loved. Mikiya put himself in his NEET position due to Shiki's accident. He witnessed her get hit by a drunken driver who was not quick enough to stop. The accident rendered Shiki in a coma for two years. At the very chance of a promising recovery, Mikiya was informed that Shiki was not well and was refused further details. It's not until she's at full health, he decided, that he would finally go to college, with Shiki by his side.

The third floor of the building was the same as the previous. He continued up the stairs, onto the forth, and final, floor. There's no red light, but merely the standard glow of any lit normal room, with a slight smell of nicotine present. Before he could knock, the door opened. The woman he saw was slender, with tight clothes, tied up red hair, and glasses.

"Welcome," Touko greeted him. She looked at his glasses, flat hair, all black clothes. "You look lamer than I expected," Touko said as if disappointed, but not dropping her warm charm.

"Excuse me?" Mikiya didn't understand the statement, and was confused by her personality. Was this the same woman he talked to on the phone? She seemed so much friendlier and slightly childish.

"The very first person to catch on to this place is just a normal boy," she clarified for him.

Mikiya was further confused. It was as if this place wasn't meant for normal people, according to Touko's definition of normal, whatever it may have been. "We did talk on the phone," Mikiya said as he tried to shift the subject to something more familiar, "and you weren't what I expected either."

"We did. Congratulations, Kokutou Mikiya, on finding the very place never to be seen, unless sought." Touko swiped of her glasses and the mood she gave Mikiya was slightly more frightening as she became more serious. "So like this?"

"I'm sorry, but, a little." Mikiya was embarrassed to admit he got the wrong impression of her.

"No offense taken. I always change myself accordingly."

Touko was more interesting than Mikiya expected. She was an artist, and quite the actor, although it felt more like "manipulator" was a more accurate word. "If I may ask, how has no one found you here yet?"

"I don't know." Touko was not subtle in dodging the question. "You came here for my dolls and puppets, correct?"

"Yes, ma'am. I described to you the one I saw. It made me a fan of your work."

"Thank you. I have more downstairs, including a replica of the one you like so much."

They proceeded downstairs one floor. Mikiya felt a little disappointed to not see the main office of Touko's work. As they entered the room, a large work table stood in the center of the room and its tools hung above it. Mikiya scanned around the room and quickly found the one he was looking for. It sat along the wall of the room to his right.

"Why are some of them not hung or shelved?" Mikiya asked Touko as he approached the doll.

"They're either not finished or because I still have a use for them," Touko replied with more vague honesty. "What attracts you to that one so much?"

"It looks like a girl I'm infatuated with." Mikiya squatted to put himself at the same level of the doll. "Her name is Ryougi Shiki."

Touko's eyes widened at the coincidence she was presented with. If Shiki were to recover in several days, she would surely inform Mikiya of who her therapist was, or worse, who was training Shiki to use her eyes. It was clear to Touko that Mikiya doesn't even recognize the situation he was in.

"Mr. Kokutou," Touko approached him, and starred directly into his eyes, "you seem to have a knack for finding information; after all, you found me."

Mikiya felt ecstatic as Touko's words built on top of each other, leading to something worthwhile.

"Do you need a job?"


	4. Chapter 4

**Fate/Eternal Night**

**Ch. 4: The Common Trend**

Shirou awoke the next morning to find Sakura kneeling in front of him, setting her hair behind her ears.

"Good morning, Senpai," Sakura greeted him.

Shirou wished he could tell if this greeting was meant to feel different from the others, but his worries got the best of his mind. But her returning to him had to mean something. "Sakura-"

"Shirou, starting today," Sakura found it hard for the words to come out, "can I stay here?"

The question was beyond more than what Shirou expected. Move in? Would Taiga even allow that?

"Sure," Taiga didn't even hesitate. "It's about time actually."

They were in the living room eating breakfast, and Shirou was dumbfounded.

However, Taiga immediately stuck her chop sticks in Shirou's face before he could make a rational thought. "We all know Sakura is a special case. I don't want to see you two get out of hand."

Shirou felt insulted to see Taiga have no faith in the coming-of-age boy. "Can we please not go there?" Shirou asked irritated.

Sakura was embarrassed, but felt confident in Shirou; she would leave it to him to dictate the pace of their relationship.

Shirou and Sakura were walking to school together, when Shirou fought to ask the big question on his mind. "Sakura, umm… Are we actually... Well, like why, why did you decide to move in and…?" Shirou bounced around the question, as to not jump to any conclusions.

"Senpai, can we hold hands?" Sakura asked him while blushing.

His question was answered. Shirou's face became very gentle. "Yeah."

Rin's first reaction was to spray her lunch drink at the news. It caught the attention of the class and gave them all a slight laughter.

"Sorry," Rin said out loud. She was embarrassed as it did not fit the pleasant common idea of a lady, a Tohsaka at that.

"You don't have to apologize to them," Issei assured her.

"You don't have a name to live up to," she retorted.

"No, I do not. And in all actuality, you put that pressure on yourself. Sorry, but the Tohsaka name isn't all that popular here if you haven't noticed."

"Then I'll just make it that way. Because everyone at school loves me."

"Hmmmhmm", Issei hummed, denying Rin's statement.

"You are an exception to the rule. Ugh," Rin stopped herself from going any further with Issei and redirected her attention to who started this feud, "Shirou, you are what?!"

"Sakura and I are dating," Shirou repeated himself.

"But after yesterday, I thought things looked so bleak."

"They did, but I guess something changed in her. I'm happy about it."

Rin calmed herself down. Sakura was never her biggest concern, but it was weight off her shoulders to finally see Sakura walk a path she may find worth living for. "I am too, it's just so shocking."

Rin leaned back in her seat, crossing her arms. Shirou already knew two people about to participate in the Grail War and now he was closer than ever, or was he? Did Sakura leaving the Matou manor mean she was giving up her place as a mage? Rin needed to know her competition, and the timing seemed like it couldn't have come at a better to find out.

Rin's right hand began to sear in pain. She didn't express it as she knew what was coming. "Please excuse me," Rin nodded her head to Shirou and Issei as she quickly walked off and exited the classroom. Rin quickly went for the stairs so she could go down to the first floor restroom. Sakura was a freshman, and although the odds were unlikely, as any master could receive their command seals at any time, Rin didn't want to risk any chance. She entered the restroom to find two girls she didn't know. They expressed their respect of her before leaving and Rin thanked them. The back of Rin's hand was starting to bleed, and she washed off her blood under the faucet. After a minute or so, the pain faded. Rin pulled her hand from under the faucet and starred at the three tattoos that formed on her hand: her three command seals.

Rin entered the nurse's office and pretended to be injured, eventually getting to go home early. As the hours to which school ended, her cell phone rang. The ID showed Shirou calling.

"Hello, Shirou," Rin answered.

"Ah Rin, what did you leave school for?"

"Oh you know, delicate girl like me, I hurt myself on the way to the restroom and it made me feel ill after."

"Okay…" Rin could hear in Shirou's voice being confused. Rin came never came across as weak, and she always made sure of that. "So do want me to bring some food or something?" Shirou offered.

"What about Sakura? You should head home."

"Well she said she was going to go get some more things from home. Taiga's already made extra space for her in the dojo in my back yard. For whatever reason, she didn't want me to come. You know, I've still never been to her house once."

"I'm sure of it." Rin was acting as if she was going along with Shirou's words, although who would ever let anyone see the Matou household. Rin never saw it herself, but despite its richness, she knows of its feeling of emptiness, and only violence brought any form of life. "Well, if you have time, why not? Just make a good soup for me, if you so kindly could." She figured it would be a good distraction for Shirou while he waited on Sakura.

Shirou hung up the phone and headed for the shopping district. He walked into a small department store amongst the strip malls. As he exited, with groceries in hand, a small girl bumped into him. She had the brightest blonde hair he'd ever seen and wore a bright blue summer dress. However, what truly caught Shirou's attention was seeing her bleeding left hand.

"I'm sorry," she said to him as she turned around and tried to run into the department store.

"You're hurt," Shirou said as he lightly grabbed her hand. "Here, I got a bandage." Shirou kneeled before the young girl and bandaged her left hand. "What's your name?" he asked to become familiar with her.

"…Alice," the girl responded. She was going the public restroom to aid herself, but Shirou entranced her in awe as someone was already taking care of her.

"Well Alice, where are your parents?" Shirou asked her.

Alice pulled her hands to her chest and told him, "I don't have any parents."

"Are you an orphan, Alice?" Shirou was now concerned her for more. Looking at her, she didn't appear homeless. Alice was well groomed and her clothes were clean.

"I don't know. Can you help me, Mister?" Alice asked on the verge of tears.

"Yeah. My name is Shirou. Emiya Shirou. I'll do everything I can for you."

Alice's expression went from sad to joyous in the blink of an eye. Shirou looked at her, figuring this was child ignorance, but he knew this was no happy matter.

Shirou brought Alice home with him to Taiga and Sakura's surprise. He tried explaining to them how little Alice seemed to know, even her age and surname were absent. "Listen, we can just search for her parents for a few days, and call an orphanage if all else fails," Shirou explained to them.

"Or we could call the police, Shirou," Taiga made clear to Shirou.

Shirou looked at Taiga with an eyebrow raised in opposition to the idea. Shirou was taking advantage of this new moment to be a hero.

Taiga sighed, wondering where this quality of Shirou ever even came from.

"Does going to an orphanage mean I won't be seeing Shirou?" Alice asked about to cry again.

"Alice, we can still see each other," Shirou told her. He wasn't sure if he meant it, but he did whatever he had to keep her calm.

"Alice, are you hurt?' Taiga asked approaching Alice. "Why don't you let me see that and we can take care of you."

Taiga undid the bandage on Alice's left hand to find three markings on the back of her hand that seemed rather alien to Taiga and Shirou.

"How?" Taiga questioned the injury. It was so organized.

Sakura ran out of the living room with a pale face. She stood a little down the hall, as Shirou came to ask her what was wrong.

"It's… Nothing. Nothing at all," Sakura tried to convince Shirou she was fine to no prevail.

"You looked like you saw a ghost," Shirou told her. He was sure Sakura had to know her own condition, but he made sure nothing she said was going to get past him.

"Please, Shirou, just let me think for a minute. Bringing in a stranger is a little scary." Sakura gave him a smile before sitting down along the wall. Sakura had her arms resting on her knees and starred at the ground with introspection.

The home phone rang, sending a chill down Shirou's spine.

"Crap!" Shirou shouted as he ran to the phone. He picked up and was immediately yelled at before even saying hello.

"Where are you!? I've been trying your cell for the past half hour!?" Rin shouted at him.

"Home. I-" Shirou was cut off trying to explain.

"Home!? You just leave a sick girl sitting around all alone!?" Rin wasn't sick, of course, but felt insulted by Shirou's bail.

Shirou giggled at Rin's yelling. It was painful to listen to, but refreshing as it was good old Rin. "I see you still have all your energy."

"Damn it," Rin spoke to herself.

"I heard that," Shirou teased her. "Listen, I was on my way when I met a little girl who seems to be in a pretty bad spot." He turned to Alice as she walked back into the living room with Taiga.

"It's like there's nothing on her hand. I didn't know what to do with the first aid kit," Taiga whispered to Shirou.

Shirou starred at Alice while explaining her condition to Rin. "She seems to have amnesia. She has no recollection of her home or family, even little about herself. Her name is Alice, but I doubt that's even true. She still appears Japanese, so I don't know who would give her such a name."

"How old is she?" Rin asked, now more understanding.

"Looks maybe eight to ten, I guess."

"She's young, Shirou; maybe she got the name from a story book."

"Maybe. I can call you back later."

"Sure. See ya."

"Bye." Shirou hung up the phone and offered Alice a tour of the house.

Sakura remained in the hall as she saw Shirou walk out of the living room with Alice. Sakura had not received her command seals yet, and tried to remind herself to be hopeful. There was still a chance Zouken might be chosen over her. But the odds were fifty-fifty, as someone from the Matou family had to be chosen. There was never a Grail War without an Einzbern, Tohsaka, and Matou. What would happen if Alice became Sakura's enemy?

As Shirou and Alice walk into the backyard, Shirou reveals the one thing he shares in common with Alice. "Hey Alice, you want in on a secret?"

"Can I really?" Alice rejoiced in growing closer to Shirou.

"Yeah, I have amnesia too. I can't remember anything beyond ten years ago." It was never really a secret, but Shirou rarely brought it up. Most of the people he knows still don't know. Shirou's never imagined a childhood outside Fuyuki City and without his father Kiritsugu.

"How old are you, Shirou?" Alice asked him.

"Eighteen-years-old," Shirou answered.

"Do you ever want to remember, Shirou?"

Shirou laughed, not sure how to answer. "Well, not really. I'm happy the way I am. How about you, Alice?"

"I don't have to remember as long as I have you, Shirou." Alice said full of cheerful. "But I do want to know if I have some things though."

"Like what?"

"I want friends and family," Alice answered modestly.

"Then consider me both." Shirou gave Alice a thumbs-up.

"Onii-chan!" Alice shouted.

"Yeah, 'Onii-chan.'"


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note**: 1) I'm always going back and fixing typos, just so you know. And feel free to point out any I miss if it feels like it's been there for a while. 2) Three chapters in one day? Yep. That's what took me so long. I originally planned on the past three chapters to be one, but the points of view jumped around too much. So I had to organize and transition the scenes differently. Plus, I wanted to get KnK introductions done quick, as it's going through the least revisions of the source material right now, and I've made you guys wait long enough. I'm currently working on a timeline for myself, to make sure things make sense, but the story is pretty set; just working on some finer details. And if I ever have a long break, know I'm hard at work, or partying, because I will finish this F/SNxKnK adaption. It's kind of a vision, so bear with me as it builds up to the inevitable 5th Holy Grail War and the chaos to come!

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**Fate/Eternal Night**

**Ch. 5: Past Selves**

It was several days before, that Touko began her move into Mifune City. She was transferred from her previous station in Fuyuki to mentor the Ryougi heir. Touko received word that Shiki punctured her eyes upon recovery from the coma. Shiki Ryougi should have been aware the day would come where see could finally see death. This Shiki, however, reacted with immense fear. It could have been nothing other than the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception. If this new Shiki, who claims to remember little before her accident, is so afraid, then Touko Aozaki will train her to master those eyes.

The next day after Mikiya accepted Touko's offer of the job, Touko went to see Shiki for the first time. Touko exited the elevator on the fourth floor and went straight to Shiki's room. She entered on the girl wide awake, eyes bandaged.

"Hello," Touko greeted Shiki with a warm and welcome smile. "I'm Touko Aozaki, your new speech therapist. You haven't been speaking very well lately, have you?"

"I don't need you here; I can speak just fine," said Shiki, as if to shove Touko out the door with words alone.

Touko immediately broke away from the pleasant mask she portrayed. "I'm well aware of that, and so is your family-"

"You here for something?" Shiki cut Touko off.

"I'm here for you to master your e-" Touko leaped forward to prevent Shiki pressing the alarm, and took the switch her herself. "That would have been bad for both of us."

"Only you."

"Nope. You need me. Your curse, is never going away. As I was saying, your eyes."

"You know of them?"

"Of course, you can't tell me those bandages are really helping."

"I see lines. They act like divisions, as if they're supposed to be cut. But I only see the lines of the bandage, that's more than enough for me. I never want to go back to that world."

"Hmm…" Touko began ponder their situation.

"You're stumped," Shiki said with slight laughter, about to give up on Touko's help already.

"No, we just need to find your origin. Everyone perceives death differently, and it lies in your basic nature. There's never been one consistency with the Eyes, and that's why it's still believed to be only a myth. But your family is relying on this power, and for me to make it happen."

"So you're in it for the money."

"Or your loyalty. I'm still a mage, like anyone else after you."

"Either way you win, and I'm a tool."

"Please, Shiki, we can be friends."

"I dislike you," Shiki harshly shot down Touko's offer. "In fact, I want to kill you."

Touko grinned at this response. "Did you know that you're under suspicion of murder?"

These words were as sudden on Shiki, as they were uncalled for.

"There's no significant evidence against you though, and without your memories, the world may never know," Touko assured Shiki.

Shiki gritted her teeth in frustration. "The urge to kill is something that is calling to me. The closer anyone gets, the stronger it becomes. To deny it makes me feel like a part of me is missing."

"So maybe you were a murderer." Touko starred at Shiki for a brief moment of silence. "But that's not what bothers you, is it? You're worried about how empty you are." Touko looked at her watch as if it meant anything. "Well, my time is up. Think about it." Touko left the room leaving a magic seal on the door.

Shiki felt the seal's presence and assumed it was to ward off something. At the moment, she needed all the protection she could get. She felt weak and innocent, and a part of those feelings disgusted her. She hated weak people, and for that time, hated herself. However, beyond having no memory of her previous self, she couldn't remember the name of the one man who always kept her in check. Her memories of him weren't always the same either. She had memories of times she let him in her heart passionately, and others she had rejected his presence at all. Beyond the Shiki that she was now, and her past self, there was another.

Shiki pondered further with each day if being in service of anyone was worth living for. Would her eyes be so easy to except? She had to have an answer soon, Touko was quickly losing her patience. Shiki's indecisive behavior made Touko leave sooner each passing day.

She doesn't need me. It was a fact that was becoming clear to Shiki as she thought more about Touko. Touko had brought Shiki's mind off her eyes, even when they talked about them. Shiki had become dependent on Touko's conversations, but by that time, it was too late.

Shiki spent that day and night alone. It was in the middle of the night did she hear her room door open. The presence did not speak. Its footsteps were slow and breathed heavily. Shiki felt cold hands grasp around her neck and the fingers began to dig into her. She was choking, and now was her chance to die.

I can't die. For her. For him. For my selves.

Shiki rolled the two of them off the bed. The presence lost its grip of her. Shiki located her possession by feeling the wall. She began to aimlessly step back until she hit the window. The presence, now with a quicker pace, charged at her. Shiki quickly felt for the window's lock and turned it. With the window unlocked, Shiki swung it open, and the two of them fell out of hospital building. Shiki's supernatural instincts were beginning to take effect as she slid in contact with the ground and effortlessly stabilized herself on her feet.

"Are you a cat?" Touko's sarcastic voice could be heard from behind the bushes.

Shiki smiled as she astonished herself. "It was so easy."

"Sorry about this. A Wraith was floating around in the hospital and feasting on lives. Damn spirit must have possessed a body to enter your room and get past my boundary field."

"So it's your fault then. Do something about it."

"No need to be harsh." Touko readied herself and brought her attention to the recovering Wraith possessed corpse. Touko took out her cigarette from her mouth and chanted, "Fehu, Uruz, Thurisaz," while writing characters in the air in front of her.

The corpse caught fire, but continued forward.

"This is harder than I thought. The dead aren't going to care about any injury, be it an arm, a leg, even a heart. To defeat it, I'd need-"

"So you can't win," Shiki cut Touko off again, adding another for what could have been countless times now. Shiki sighed and stood ready to attack.

"You can't win either. We should run."

Shiki tasted the blood on her next from the corpse's dug in fingers. "No, the corpse is still alive. I'll kill that. I'll kill it, no matter what it is!" Shiki threw off the bandage over her eyes, embracing her new power.

The eyes glowed a beautiful hue of blue with a piercing red at the center in contrast. Shiki dashed forward, and with her fingers, cut along a line of the corpse on its chest. The corpse did not fall and Shiki pushed it away.

"Shiki!" Touko got Shiki's attention before tossing her a sheathed knife.

Shiki caught the blade and unsheathed it. Shiki pulled back her long hair, which grew over the long time of her coma, and cut it to the length of her neck, the way she always liked it.

Shiki removed the corpse's arm as it reached out to her with her blade, then pierced it in the neck. Shiki drove the blade out to her right, exposing the flesh inside. With the corpse's body useless, the Wraith vanished. Shiki had figured the battle was over.

The Wraith reappeared before her and went into her body. Shiki, now possessed, brought the blade up to her heart.

Touko cautiously approached forward. Little did she know, what she was witnessing was Shiki still in control.

"I won't give you Shiki Ryougi. From here on, the weak me is dead," Shiki spoke out loud to the Wraith. With her eyes, she pierced her own heart, reaching the Wraith's existence but not her own. The Wraith dispersed from her body in death. "You said you'd help me master the Eyes."

"Yeah, but on one condition. I recently lost my familiar, so I need someone to fill the role."

"Can I kill on the job?"

"As you wish."

"I except. It's not like I have other intensions." Shiki collapsed on the ground, finally able to rest.

Touko aided Shiki, all the meanwhile knowing Shiki was mistaken about her intensions. "To be hollow, means you can be filled without limit."

Shiki still had questions about her previous personalities. There was a male her, SHIKI, the friendlier her, who no longer existed. Why would he just leave? What was he protecting? Probably his own dream to live happy; something Shiki could never have.

As the day came for Shiki to finally leave the hospital, she woke up to Mikiya with roses, sitting in a chair beside her. He smiled at her with love and grace.

Mikya's smile disappeared momentarily to ask the question he feared, "Do you know who I am?"

"Kokutou, you sound like a French poet," Shiki spoke to him as if they were never separated. Mikiya felt the warmth behind her cold tone, and Shiki knew it. She lost some things since two years ago, but others have stayed with her.


End file.
